Training at home

Home Gym Workout: Lower Body (Power)

Exciting day in the garage gym yesterday, as I began a new training program modified to be executed 100 percent within the humble confines of my exercise space.

Borrowing heavily from Layne Norton’s Power+Hypertrophy Adaptive Training (PHAT) routine, I began Friday to set myself up for the coming month. If you checked out my Instagram today, you noticed my programming board newly completed — with a 7-day program, I’ll rest Thursdays and Sundays, with power movement days on Friday/Saturday and hypertrophy days Monday-Wednesday.

Today’s workout went great. Here’s how it broke down, if you missed the programming board.

Lower Body Power Workout

Squats: 3×3-5. My 1RM is only at 305 for squats right now, so I really am excited to start working with lower rep ranges to load the bar up and push for max effort routinely.

Hip Thrusters: 2×6-10. Here is the first place I deviated from the original PHAT program, since it calls for the leg press machine. Don’t have one! There’s not really a safe analog to loading up with heavy weight the way you can with that machine (meaning I wouldn’t just do 2 more sets of heavy squats), so instead of focusing on the load, I focused on an explosive functional movement.

Cleans: 3×3. Another substitute, this time for hack squats. Again, explosiveness and safety over all-out weight. Floor-up power won’t be damaged by working in cleans, ever.

Straight-legged deadlifts: 3×5-8. I went light enough to go 8 each set.

TRX Leg Curls, 2×10: I don’t have a hamstring lying curl machine, as PHAT calls for in this plan, but I do have a TRX. If anyone has tips on how to increase hamstring resistance on lying heel-in curls, by the way, I’m all ears.

Standing Calf Raises, 3×10.

1-Legged Deadlifts, 2×6. My final sub, instead of seated calf raises. Again, my home gym is minus tons of machines. Instead of going crazy on my calves, I went with single-leg balance training. I grabbed some 40-pound dumbbells (with Fat Gripz), and performed 6 single-leg deadlifts per leg. Harder than they sound, even at that weight!

Reddit/r/homegym: I'm not the all-knowing authority on making a home gym, but I've got an idea of what I'm doing. So do these folks.

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